(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana)Secretary-General of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Ambassador Irwin LaRocque has described the late President of Venezuela Hugo Chavez as a “true friend” of the Community.

In a message of condolence to the Government of Venezuela, the Secretary-General said that the late President Chavez, who died on Tuesday following a battle with cancer, “demonstrated solidarity with the Governments and People of the Caribbean Community throughout his tenure and created avenues for co-operation and strengthening relations with the Governments and improving the lives of the people.”

Following is the full text of the Secretary-General’s message:

    “It is with deep sadness that the Caribbean Community has learnt of the passing of a true friend, His Excellency Hugo Chavez, President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

    President Chavez demonstrated solidarity with the Governments and People of the Caribbean Community throughout his tenure and created avenues for co-operation and strengthening relations with the Governments and improving the lives of the people.

    His vision of bringing together the people of Latin America and the Caribbean was driven by his deep sense of concern for the well-being of the disadvantaged in society, not only in his own country but in the wider region.

    His struggle with the disease that finally claimed his life epitomised the heart and spirit which he brought to bear in his attempts to raise the standard of living of the less fortunate in his homeland, in the Caribbean and the wider region.

    I extend, on my own behalf and on that of the Caribbean Community, deepest condolences to the family of President Chavez and to the Government and People of Venezuela. I am confident that the strength and spirit of the Venezuelan people, so strikingly exemplified by President Chavez, will sustain the country in its time of grief.

    May he rest in peace.”